Tourism-Related Business Pleads For Thai Govt Help

[CBPMSM]

Does not help that air fares are sky high too right now

[rgs2001uk]

Let's see, we had the closure of the airport in 2008 where all the tourists were left on their own and get stuck for several days.

Then we had our airport scams, the Jet Ski scams, the outraged prices of the toek toeks in Phuket and the beating of an older couple because of a parking spot in Phuket. Off course we also have our occasional tourist drugging in Pattaya and Phuket.

If you are able to survive all these things then the fun really starts. Triple prices for foreigners at zoo's and national parks, two menu prices, 1 for Thais and 1 for foreigners and the constant overpricing of your local toek toek drive and don't forget, the all year around open hunting season on tourists for their money.

Then off course we have our nice and flexible visa rules for people who want to extend their vacations in the LOS. We had our 2 months of smog problems in Chiang Mai with sometimes visibility of 10 meters and we had our own warzone in Bangkok.

I can see how appealing Thailand must be in the eyes of all of these tourists. And to make things even more appealing, raising prices sometimes with 20% due to a lack of customers.

It would be nice if Thais who work in the tourist business would start with the most important thing, threating tourists again as guests instead of walking ATM machines.

After spending here nearly 2 years i have to say that the charm of what was once Thailand, i drifting away very quickly. Been to the Philippines recently, so scams, every speaks an understandable language, everybody pays the same price, what a relief......, and people are more friendly there than here in Thailand. And yes, that will be my next destination and prob the country were i'm going to settle myself. I know, i'm just a small vis in the pound, but like me, there are many more who get tired of all this BS.

For all those who run an honoust buisiness, i hope you guy's manage. For all the rest, get broke or change you're attitude.

Good post. maybe off topic but the thai girlfriend who wants to marry me admitted that she is $56,000 in back payments to the bank on her house, pretending that her ex husband was making the payments while she was living with a guy in Peru. She knew dam_n well that her ex was not paying for her house, while she was hoping for a better life in Peru, she now hopes that I will pay the bank payments to marry her. I would like to but also suggested let the bank take your house and we can buy a tent and sleep outside the bank. What do these women think? That they work and make money and not pay the mortgage on their houses. Already after receiving permission to marry I am having second thoughts about Thailand and Thai women and living in another country.

Mate, thats a no brainer, second thoughts not required.

In your situation I would be too busy packing to have time to post on here.

Parting words to her would be along the lines of, nice knowing you, see you good luck, good bye.

Count yourself lucky, some guys dont see it until its too late, pay the mortgage off my ass, you have to laugh, they just cant help themselves.

[moskito]

As foreigners living here full time we need to form an organization to demand certain rites from the government and or protest the lack of. Until we take to the streets all our comments here are in vain. If we can prove to the government here that we are a valuable source of income and even then I am afraid that our efforts may be wasted.

Why don't we take over an area of Bangkok and ask politely for certain rights? Thais seem to do it on a regular basis.

If I don't get banned again for posting here, then what is my purpose for living?

You shouldnt forget that we dont live in a Democrcy here in Thailand. Specially as a farang you are just tolerated but not fully accepted. As long as you can show you got some money you are allowed to stay, if not they kick you out, even if you are married more then ten years.

If you start a demonstration for the rites you not have here, you will sit faster in immigration custody prior to deportation as you can order a beer on a bar.

The chinese which are sitting in the important positions in this country doesnt want us here and they know why! We ask questions and demand answers, do you belive they need a whole country full of ppl like that?

I kind of like the foreign politics regarding farangs....easier if u are pakistani and sale copied T-Shirts and bribe the bib....I wish we have the same foreigner politics in Europe....there are a lot of Thais living there too and they send a lot of money to Thailand every year!

[26vinny]

<BR>Please dont take my comments the wrong way i spent 9 years in thailand and love the country and most of its people to bits , but i have to say it is about time they got a kick up the backside in partucular on the Property side , there is absolutly no confidence in this part of the economy it is so corrupt , not being able to own&nbsp;land or certailn types of &nbsp;property &nbsp;, putting property in a thai persons name ,&nbsp; setting up an illegal ltd company , 30 year lease , corrupt land officials , bla bla bla. They keep on talking about 6% of the economy relying on tourism i think more like 30% . Sorry Thailand you had it coming i hope you see the light and realise that farang are not in thailand to destroy your country just be fair with us thats all.<IMG class=bbc_emoticon alt=<IMG class=bbc_emoticon alt= src="http://static.thaivisa.com/forum/public/style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif"> src="http://static.thaivisa.com/forum/public/style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif"> <BR><BR><BR>

<BR><BR><BR>The biggest problem lies with the government figures, as Thai`s are never wrong, its always the Farang.<BR>The Tourism figures are a lot higher than  6 per cent .even the 30 per cent is lower than you predict, Thai pride is the real reason, it does not want to be seen to be Reliant on Tourism as a major part of its income, because most of the people reliant on it are the rural poor, who the government dont care about, As we all know its much cheaper in every country around the Kingdom.<BR>So thats where people are going now Thailand has lost its magnatism to other places, for its own faults<BR>

[machlad]

I guess I am part of the problem and all the turmoil over the last 2 years adding up has put me off travelling to Thailand,

I had to cancel a trip in May and my usual Xmas / New year trip has been booked elsewhere,

If things get better in the future I might return the end of 2012,

Then again I might just not.

[LTGTR]

How many have closed because they should not have opened in the first place.Too many people jump on the band-wagon without first doing their homework. Some will open a bar, restaurant or guest house because their neighbour is doing it and has a few customers. Those customers won't just multiply overnight - they will spread themselves over all the available establishments and everyone loses out. To be sure the recent protests by all colours have not helped tourism, but neither they not the government can be blamed for all the tourism ills. There is just over-supply, through lack of planning. The government should not bail everyone out.

Fianlly,the voice of reason in a reply in this thread.

Edited July 2, 2010 by cdnvic
fixed quotes

[dumball]

How many people such as myself have said over the years , that what is claimed as ONLY 6% of gdp is not in fact true in the overall picture , the government and many posters just do not even look at the 'Ripple effect' , small waves slowly but surely eating away at the shoreline banks . No industry will remain solvent if they only look at what is generated at the front door , they all need to respect that the ones using that buisiness also need a customer network to keep them solvent also , when the base product , whatever that may be , becomes eroded in quality for any reason , or cost is elevated beyond a reasonable level , the wide based customer network , slowly implodes upon the mother industry .

What has been happening to the tourism industry in Thailand over quite a number of years , has been totally ignored , pushed aside , as an industry that only produces a minimal income for the country as a whole , the ripple effect and what that produced for the entire countrys 'sustainability' not taken into account . Now this denial is coming home to roost , never mind the actual causes or who done what or why , the overall picture is now being painted for all to see quite clearly , but the blinkers are still on and the rose tinted spectacles perched precariously on the end of the nose .

I baled out over 5 years ago , not because Thailand had nothing to offer , not because it had become expensive to visit , in fact I truly enjoyed my long stay in the COUNTRY of Thailand , it was the slow erosion of the welcome , the true smiles and that ever persitant 'Thailand is for Thai' retrograde attitude , you should feel honored we let you in . The people i ran into and mingled with on a daily basis were becoming agressive in their very nature , it seemed they had no time to give you either whilst eating or shopping , the soap on TV was more important than refilling your coffee cup , the chair the sales person occupied , too comfortable to leave and assist a mere customer , ignoring customers and not fullfilling thier needs is the quickest and most positive way to lose them , I hate to be ignored when I am here to help ensure YOUR livelyhood . I am not alone in my picture of Thai people that they display with a very wide brush .

[JarekN]

I think that the current financial situation makes people do a bit more research before they head out anywhere... With so much negative talk about Thailand how can anyone be surprised that the tourism is down? While I didn't have any major negative incidents with people not being friendly I will say that prices and service are way overpriced for what it is. While being in Vietnam I found that you can find good hotels/guesthouses and food at fraction of what it is in Thailand and I've met many more tourists who are no longer considering Thailand a viable destination...

Now many of you will blame the government for this, the red shirts or yellow or whatever... Reality is that the problem here was created by most of the Tourists... They are the ones paying the crazy prices and putting up with the shit... You've got tons of tourist coming for couple of weeks blowing money as if they were in Europe not thinking of the effect that this will have...

I always pay what I think the product/service is WORTH not what they ask and will refuse to buy if I do not see it reasonable... If you are willing to pay $30.00 for a small room in BKK that would cost you $10 in Saigon then you're part of the problem... If you're willing to pay $6.00 for a burger then you're just NUTS and for sure should not be bitching about how bad things are cause you're the one responsible for this situation. I'd be very curious to see statistics on daily budget that the travelers had for the last 5 years or so as that would be a good indication of things.

Given that the demand is not there and people are not willing to pay crazy prices the market will have to adjust to it or those who try to overcharge will go out of business, something that might be slowly happening right now.

Will the tourism be what it was? Probably, but not any time soon as there are many other more interesting and affordable destinations and until things change it might never happen.

My question is how much will the property value go down???

Edited July 2, 2010 by JarekN

[denissr]

How sad... but how many have been closed due the sight of soldiers killing people in the street? How many businesses have been closed because of the airport occupation and how many have been closed due to the incompetence of Abhisit's boss Suthep? Lots more, the difference is that it is pretty convenient to complain when business is bad with this bunch of yellow shirt lovers, they will pay out and they can easily do so by cutting the absurd military budget.

Someone said Tourist were scared away by Soldiers killing people in the streets. I was coming again this year for 30 days, but was scared away because the Government sat and did nothing while people ran wild trampling on others rights. I am not afraid of the Soldiers, Police or Government, it is this segment of the population that will explode at anytime if someone with a microphone, some alcohol and a hand full of Bhat wants them to. I'll bet a lot of people that are complaining now were part of the protest. They killed the goose, now they want compinsation. I do feel sorry for the people that had nothing to do with it now see their jobs effected, these people are poor enough with out this. Just another case ot the rich and polititions using the poor no mater if it is a war or a protest. There was no right side in this for the people, just polititions using the people in their game of tug of war for power and wealth.

[cdnvic]

One post deemed insulting to Thais was deleted.

[khaowong1]

maybe the Thai govt. can offer free 30 day tourist visas. that should kick start the tourist season.

Edited July 3, 2010 by cdnvic
fixed text formatting for readability

[jayjay0]

Some golf clubs waiving the green fee?

Not around Chiang Mai. Last year I joined Mae Jo on a basic 3,000 baht membership. I just learned that it is going UP to 5,000 baht. Oh they throw in 2,000 baht credit in the most overpriced restaurant on earth. E.g. 120 baht for a large Singha. 59 baht for a cup of coffee. Last time I had lunch there a little over a month ago, and I do mean THE LAST TIME, a chicken salad and Singha cost 211 baht, including the mandatory 10% service charge. Yesterday four of us ate down the road for 220 baht. 240 with OPTIONAL tip.

As for the golfing it is great playing on an empty course. I guess they have done any analysis and found out the great majority of costs to maintain a golf course are fixed costs. A phrase from Forrest Gump comes to mind.

Then there is that "mediocre Muni", Gymkhana (sp?). They raised rates around 150 baht several months back. That was the last straw for me. The course was in horrible shape and they raised rates! Haven't been back since.

Stardome last year had a couple of Sports Days during the week where you could play 18 for 500 baht including the caddy fee. I guess they decided the course was getting too much play, now last I heard it is still 700 baht every weekday. Whatever it is I haven't been there in 6 months or so either.

Bottom line is on average rates are higher than last year and the courses are empty. Time for the Chiang Mai golf course managers to take a look at Econ. 101.

I will say as of a month or so ago, Lanna had maintained a sport day or two. On the Monday I was there, it was packed. (At least in the morning.) I'll bet they are hoping the well kept secret of supply and demand doesn't get out.

Sounds to me like people are starting to agree with Mark Twain when he said golf is a good way to ruin a good walk. LOL

[anemone]

I am working in tourist area and yes, not ten percent but half of the shops around are closes... and I agree many of them should never have opened, but, many of them are proper bussinesses trying to make it through the season, and as for goverment support we just got a raid from immigration looking for foreigners working without a workpermit... I was fine but some of my unfortanuta colleagues are hit with an enormous fine and instructors in prison.... instead of a tax help we de love an easier system to get temp workvisas for seasonrelated bussiness!!

[Pops]

Seems like a waste of money, spending 20 million baht on promoting a part of Thailand, to tourists that are already in Thailand, while the whole tourism industry of Thailand is suffering ?

Wouldn't it be better to spend 20 million baht on Thailand promotion campaigns in some of the major tourist markets of Thailand.

It is just like all the tourist promotional clips you see on Thai TV ?? Which frickin' foreign tourist watches Thai TV anyhow ?? Think about it.

Thailand is one of the most beautiful and developed tourist destinations in South East Asia, but the tourist sector of this country is run by people with absolutely no clue.

[Groongthep]

The people i ran into and mingled with on a daily basis were becoming agressive in their very nature , it seemed they had no time to give you either whilst eating or shopping , the soap on TV was more important than refilling your coffee cup , the chair the sales person occupied , too comfortable to leave and assist a mere customer , ignoring customers and not fullfilling thier needs is the quickest and most positive way to lose them , I hate to be ignored when I am here to help ensure YOUR livelyhood . I am not alone in my picture of Thai people that they display with a very wide brush .

What you have described here unfortunately is not that the people began to hate you but rather that they began to see you as just another regular person and hence no longer special and deserving of special treatment. They began to see you like they see everyone else who is not their relative. Look around in Thai shops and restaurants and you'll see that unless they appear to be rich big shots they don't treat other Thais any better than they treat long term foreigners.

[taupo67]

Don't blame politics! Although I'm sure the government would love to blame political unrest. The Baht is only just starting to drop in value and with a global recession people don't want to go to a country where their GBP, Euro or Dollar is worth 30% less than it was 2 years ago. Home grown tourism must be booming as the price you'd pay for a flight to come here can get you a good few nights in a nice hotel or a cottage rental. The math's simple! With airfares and hotels it's cheaper to stay at or near home without the worry of crap exchange rates. And it's summer!

Certainly resonates with me.

As a long time traveller to Thailand (twice a year for 10 years), the single biggest influence on my decision on whether to return is simply value for my hard earned money.

I have travelled during SARS, Bird Flu, Swine Flu, Tsunami fall out, a number of elections, a coup, various protests (red, yellow and others), continued violence in the South etc etc etc, and although I always keep an eye on how these may affect my travel plans they have never stopped me from travelling.

What will probably make my trip later this month be my last to Thailand is a combination of a strong Baht and general inflation in tourist prices. A double whammy of increased hotel, food and other tourist costs along with an ever strengthening Baht simply means I will be looking elsewhere for our holidays next year (Vietnam, Malaysia, Bali, Borneo, Cambodia et al).

And I'm certainly not a cheapskate backpacker, in fact I'd say I was a middle of the road tourist (2,000 - 3,000THB per night accomodation) who, from my own guesstimates has seen my average hotel prices jump from £25 per night to £50 in a few years. With local prices increasing as well and cheap flights becoming a thing of the past (used to pay around £500, now paying £150 more) it has just become a simple economic decision.

Our average month long summer holiday for two has gone up by around £1,000.

Our choice is simply whether we can afford that extra money, and if we can, then do we get better value for it by going somewhere else.

It will be a real shame to go somewhere else (not least as I have just about managed to master some simple conversational skills and have some great memories and good friends out there), but Thailand simply doesn't offer the same value for money as it has done in the past.

[jayjay0]

There is a good reason for the tourist industrie to be down. It has a lot to do with the Red Shirts and the yellow Shirts People going on vacation do not check out the politics of a country. They are more concerned with there saftey. Neither the red or the yellow shirts has shown any concern for there saftey. Both have made the headlines all over the world and not in a positive light it is to bad they do not care about Thailand. Both are in it to get the corruption money nothing else.

There has been a lot of talk about scams rip offs double pricing and so on. I suppose this is shocking to many but for people who have traveled in third world countries this is normal. It bothers the people on Thai V more than some one planing a vacation. As it has been said before the baht has been relativly stable while other countries have been going down. Naturaly some people will be looking around for other alternatives or not traveling at all.

Another point is that the quality of accomendations has been declinihg in many places this is due to a lack of maintanice. The idea of keeping every thing in a one condition is forign to Thailand. Good enough no matter how bad it is seems to be the acceptable norm.

This is my opinion only but I believe that as a whole Thai' see any thing Thai as the best in the world and the rest second best. If they could get over this attitude and leaarn to appriciate others as being different they would stand a chance of improving the way they serve guests. As it is now the only thing that matters to them is seperating the guests from there money and many pick up on that attitude.

Edited July 3, 2010 by jayjay0

[Bakseedaa]

<BR>How sad... but how many have been closed due the sight of soldiers killing people in the street? How many businesses have been closed because of the airport occupation and how many have been closed due to the incompetence of Abhisit's boss Suthep? Lots more, the difference is that it is pretty convenient to complain when business is bad with this bunch of yellow shirt lovers, they will pay out and they can easily do so by cutting the absurd military budget.<BR>

<BR><BR><BR>Are we in the same country,  Where did soldiers kill people in the streets ?  the airport "occupation" lasted 9 days, I dont think that shut many businesses... and when you have a small army of terrorists invade the capital city and burn and loot major shopping centres and malls, then the military need a huge buget to keep normal citizens safe in their homes...  if brains were dynamite I dont think some of these Red Shirt Appologists would have enough to blow their noses....

[scania]

Sad to hear but totally understandable, red war, visa restrictions and last but not least, even everything was upside down cause of the red´s and yellows, the Thai Baht kept strong and still does. 

[Extraterrestrial]

Sad to hear but totally understandable, red war, visa restrictions and last but not least, even everything was upside down cause of the red´s and yellows, the Thai Baht kept strong and still does. 

I am glad one person has stated the visa restrictions, especially for aliens

That situation is nothing short of insane (why do that if you want to attract foreigners?).

I would add, many hotels are 2x (some even 3x) the cost of what they were ten years ago.

OK, most things are more expensive than ten years ago.

The problem is they are the same rooms, coupled with worse services.

Pattaya-Jomtien is a case in point.......prices have gone way up, quality of services is down.

Much of this has to do with the influx of greed real estate aliens (guess many of them are now leaving town )

Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way back home